Reflections on the Ministry

In March 2008, I will be celebrating my forty-fifth year in the ministry. These forty-five years of service to God have been a journey through good times and difficult times. During this long journey, I have experienced times of joy and happiness and times of trials and testing. However, if I had to begin again, if I had to do it all over again, I would do it without one moment of hesitation.

The celebration of this important time in my life and in my ministry has led me to reflect on the life of ministry. It is only when one looks back at the highs and lows of a minister’s life that one begins to realize some important aspects of the ministry that, at least to me, are essential to who one is and to what one does. In this post, I want to list the most essential aspect of the ministry, that to me is non-negotiable, and that is the call to the ministry.

I believe the life of ministry is based on a divine call. The ministry is not a profession, a job like any other ordinary job. The ministry requires a call from God because the minister will be involved in doing the work of God. A successful minister will be conscious of the divine call and will delight and love being in the service of God.

Today, there are some people who are in the ministry for the wrong reasons. Some people believe that the ministry is a profession, a way of earning a living. I remember reading once about a famous minister who said about his ministry: “I tried to be a lawyer but I failed. I tried to be a teacher but I failed. I tried to be a tailor and I failed, so, there was nothing left for me to do except the ministry.” This is the wrong reason to be in the ministry.

Others enter the ministry because they see the ministry as an easy life. This is what a young man told me during an interview here at the seminary. I asked him: “Why do you want to come to seminary?” His answer was indicative of what many people think about the ministry. He said: “I want to become a pastor because pastors only work one day a week.” That young man wanted to become a minister as a result of a wrong perception about what ministers do. Here was an individual who had decided to enter the ministry but God was not the primary motive behind his decision.

I believe that whenever anyone chooses to enter the ministry as a vocation, that person must be sure that the decision has been motivated by a divine call, a call from God. As Paul wrote: “Yet preaching the Good News is not something I can boast about. I am compelled by God to do it” (1 Corinthians 9:16 NLT). One is compelled by God to preach the good news of Jesus Christ. Preaching the gospel comes because the divine summons reverberates deeply through the innermost being of person, summoning that person to work for God.

To many people in the twenty-first century, the call of God is hard to understand. No one can explain to another person the full aspect of the divine call; each call is distinctive and original. We see this throughout the Bible. Amos was a shepherd taking care of his flock. Amos wrote that one day the Lord called him away from his flock and told him: “Go and prophesy to my people in Israel” (Amos 7:15). So, Amos became a prophet. What else could Amos do: “The lion has roared-- so who isn’t frightened? The Lord has spoken-- so who can refuse to proclaim his message?” (Amos 3:8).

The call of Isaiah was different. One day when Isaiah was worshiping in the temple he had a vision of God sitting on his throne. That experience of the holy brought him into the very presence of God and he heard a call to service: “Whom should I send as a messenger to this people? Who will go for us?” And Isaiah said: “Here I am. Send me” (Isaiah 6:8). The summons of God spoke to the heart and conscience of Isaiah and at that moment Isaiah discovered his vocation and destiny.

Two different people, two different calls. One was summoned and the other volunteered but both were sent by God with a mission and a message. The same could be said of the calls of Jeremiah and Ezekiel and all other prophets in the Old Testament. Each call is original and each call comes through individuals in unique circumstances but to one and all, the call of God comes as a divine constraint. Each situation may be different and each call may be unique, but in the end the call is one and the same: it is a call to preach the word of God.

This is another characteristic to the ministry that sets it apart from other vocations. In Romans 10: 15 Paul said: “And how shall they preach unless they are sent?” The call to the ministry includes a mysterious sense of commission, that is, that one is being sent by the eternal God with a mission and a message. The assurance that one is sent must be an essential aspect of the ministry.

In the Old Testament there were many people who went without being sent. These people are called “false prophets.” And these people were rebuked by God because they did not speak on behalf of God.

The Lord said about those people who went without being sent: “I have not sent these prophets, yet they run around claiming to speak for me. I have given them no message, yet they go on prophesying” (Jeremiah 23:21). Christian ministry is based on the conviction that one is sent by Christ: “As the Father sent me, so am I sending you” (John 20:21). Jesus told his disciples: “I am sending you out as sheep among wolves” (Matthew 10:16).

Those who are called to the ministry labor under a sacred trust imposed upon them. Those who are sent by God are sent to lead men and women, young and old, to the ways of Christ. Ministers are called by God to a transformative ministry, the kind of ministry that will challenge men and women to accept things that really matter and to abandon those things that hold them captive. The gospel of Jesus Christ transforms the life of people. It brings them from night to day, from darkness to light, from death to life.

Such is the life of ministry; it is a sacred and glorious calling that one receives from a holy God. It is a calling that brings an awesome responsibility. So, today I pause and think about that day, forty-five years ago, when I began the journey of the ministry. Was it worth it? In answer to this question I think about the people who came to faith in Christ through my ministry, I think about the lives that were changed, the marriages that were restored, I think about those who abandoned lives of crime, drugs, alcohol, and many other vices to follow Jesus. Yes, I have to say that it was worth traveling this road, the road of the ministry. I have to say with a loud voice that it has been a glorious journey, a blessed forty-five years.

Claude Mariottini
Professor of Old Testament
Northern Baptist Seminary

Tags: Call to Preach, Ministry, Pastorate

Jeremiah 1:1-10: The Call to Preach

Every pastor is a prophet, and every prophet is a pastor. What distinguishes a minister as a prophet is not the prophet’s criticism of society, even though prophets were critics of their society. And, it is not that prophets preached judgment and condemnation, even though they did. What distinguishes a minister as a prophet is the call of God to speak on behalf of God.

There are two words used in the Bible to describe a prophet. The first word is found in the Old Testament. It is the Hebrew word nabi. The word nabi is translated “prophet” in English, but in Hebrew the word means “one who is called.”

The second word is found in the New Testament. It is the word prophetes, which in English is translated as “prophet.” The word prophetes is composed of two Greek words: pro and phetes. In English, the word prophetes means “to speak on behalf of” someone.

Pastors are prophets. They are prophets because they have a call from God to proclaim the word of God to a lost world. They are prophets because in their ministry they speak on behalf of God.
In describing the call to preach, I have chosen the call of the prophet Jeremiah to illustrate a pastor’s ministry and to emphasize what is involved in being a minister of God.

The most important thing in the ministry is knowing that one has been called of God. In the Old Testament, a prophet was not “called of God,” but rather, the prophet was “sent by God.” Speaking about false prophets, the Lord said: “I did not send the prophets, yet they ran” (Jeremiah 23:21).

Jeremiah 1:1-10 is a narrative that introduces the call experience of Jeremiah, a man from Anathoth. The elements that are present in the call experience of Jeremiah are also present in the call experience of every minister.

First, a minister is in the ministry because of a direct call from God. The ministry is not a job, it is a vocation, and unless someone is called by God to preach God’s word, that person has no place in the ministry.

The Lord said to Jeremiah: “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you” (v. 5). Every pastor has an intimate relationship with God. The word “to know” refers to a special relationship between God and Jeremiah. It was the same word used to describe the relationship between God and Israel. The Lord said to Israel: “You only have I known of all the families of the earth” (Amos 3:2). And when Israel failed God, God lamented that there was no knowledge of God in the land. Thus when God said that he knew Jeremiah, God was emphasizing his personal commitment to Jeremiah.

God knows every person whom he calls into the ministry and the Lord has a personal interest in their ministry. Because God called them and cares for them, he is also committed to their success as ministers.

Second, a minister is set apart for a special work. God said to Jeremiah: “before you were born, I set you apart” (v.5). The expression “to set apart” in Hebrew means “to make it holy.” God sets a person apart for ministry, for special work. In the Bible, anything or anyone who belonged to God was holy, set a part for God’s use.

God also sets apart people and gives them special tasks. All believers are holy people; we are set apart for God’s special use. We, as believers, are set apart from the world to become a special people, a holy people.

Prophets had two very important functions as people called by God. First, a prophet acted as an ambassador for God. God told Jeremiah: “I appointed you as a prophet to the nations” (v.5). One is appointed by God in the same way an ambassador is appointed by the president. Jeremiah was appointed to represent God and to speak on behalf of God to all the nations.

Ministers are God’s ambassadors. Their assignment may not be to a specific nation, but to a specific state, a specific city, or a specific community. Ministers represent God in their community in the same way Jeremiah represented God before Israel and before Babylon.

Second, a prophet acted as a representative of God. The prophet Jeremiah had been “set apart” by God. “Set apart” means “holy.” The prophet was a holy person. God commanded his people: “You shall be holy; for I the Lord your God am holy” (Leviticus 19:2). Because the prophet represents a holy God, the prophet is a holy person who lives a holy life. Not a perfect life, because only God is perfect. A holy life means a life set apart.

That is the only way a minister can be effective in the ministry. Ministers must learn how to live a life that is completely dedicated to God and to his cause. The word “sanctify” is the same word translated to “set apart” or to “make holy.” Because Jesus desired that his disciples would learn how to live a holy life, he had to set himself apart, he had to sanctify himself for his work. Jesus said: “And for their sakes I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified through the truth” (John 17:19). Jesus also said: “Sanctify them by the truth: your word is truth” (John 17:17).

“Your word is truth.” The ministry of those who are called by God is focused on the word of God. It is through God’s word that people are made holy, set apart for God’s work. This is why Jeremiah’s ministry was a ministry of the word of God.

When Jeremiah heard God’s call to the ministry, Jeremiah objected. He said: “Ah, Sovereign Lord, I do not know how to speak; I am only a child” (v. 6).

“I do not know how or what to speak, for I am only a child.” In Hebrew the word “child” does not mean a little boy; it means someone who has little experience. What Jeremiah was saying was this: “Oh Lord, why do you call me to preach, when I do not know what to say.”

The proclamation of the word is the key factor of the ministry of those who are called. The minister must preach the word of God every week. Sunday after Sunday, week after week, the minister must be ready to proclaim the word of God. But the question is: what to preach?

Different people deal with this problem in different ways. Some pastors go to the Internet and get a sermon every week. This, I say, is the poorest way of preaching God’s word. I doubt that Jeremiah would search the Internet for a word from God. Other pastors buy books of sermons and preach them every week. These sermons outlines are very popular today. Hundreds of books are written every year providing sermons for busy pastors. Everything comes included, even the illustrations.

But if you read the book of the prophet Jeremiah, he would be against this practice of preaching other people’s sermons. In Jeremiah 23:29-30 the Lord said: “Is not my word like fire, says the LORD, and like a hammer that breaks a rock in pieces?” God’s word has power: it is like a hammer that breaks a rock in pieces.

How does a prophet prepare to preach? A prophet receives the word directly from God. When God called Jeremiah to preach, God also equipped Jeremiah to preach: “Then the Lord reached out his hand and touched my mouth and said to me, ‘Now, I have put my words in your mouth’” (v. 9).

Because ministers have been called by God and because he has appointed them to speak on his behalf, God himself will put his words in their mouth and they will speak on behalf of God. This is the ministry that God has given to ministers: the ministry of the word of God.

If ministers want to be effective as ministers of Jesus Christ, if they want to speak on behalf of God, then they must allow God to put his words in their mouths. There are several things ministers must do to succeed in their ministry.

God said: “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you.” God knows those whom he called. In turn, ministers must know God. Ministers must be good students of the word of God. When they study, God will teach them. Ministers must be people of prayer. When they pray, God will speak to them the things they must proclaim.

God said: “Before you came forth out of the womb, I sanctified you.” God has sanctified those whom he has called; he has set them apart. Now, ministers must take seriously the words of Jesus. Jesus said: “For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified” (John 17:19).

For the sake of the people under their care, ministers must sanctify themselves, they must live holy lives. Ministers must allow their life to reflect the holiness and the love of God. Ministers must learn to love their people in the same way God loves them. Ministers must serve their people that their people might be sanctified by the truth, the word of God.

Ministers must focus their ministry on the word of God. They must preach God’s word with power. They must teach God’s word with enthusiasm. God’s word to Joshua should be a guide to those who are called to be ministers of God: “Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful” (Joshua 1:8).

Claude Mariottini
Professor of Old Testament
Northern Baptist Seminary

Tags: Divine Call, Jeremiah, Ministers, Ministry, Pastors

The Minister's Covenant

A few days ago, I received a catalog announcing the sale of a book, The Valley of Vision. This book is a collection of Puritan prayers and devotions, edited by Arthus Bennet. The book was published also with an audio edition containing 7 CDs.

The publisher, The Banner of Truth, offers an audio sample on line. The sample, “The Valley of Vision,” is a beautiful prayer that shows the devotion and piety of those who composed these prayers. Click here to hear the sample audio.

The following is the daily devotion for Monday, 09, April 2007:

The Minister's Covenant

Lord Jesus,
True God, everlasting Life,
Redeemer of sinners,
I give my body, soul, intellect, will, affections
to thee.

I call the day, sun,
earth, trees, stones,
wind, rain, frost, snow,
my home, bed, table, food,
books, drink, clothes,
to witness that I come to thee for rest of soul
from the thunders of guilt
and dread of eternity.

Grant me
a circumcised heart that I may love thee,
a right spirit that I may seek thy glory,
a principle within which thou wilt own,
an interest in the blood that cleanses,
the righteousness that justifies,
the redemption that delivers,
that I may not be found a hypocrite on
Judgment Day.

For the sake of thy cruel death take my time,
strength, gifts, talents, usefulness, piety,
which in full purpose of heart I consecrate to thee.
Let not sin find a place in my heart to becloud my
vision,
and may no foolish act wither my gifts.

Preserve me from the falls by which others stumble,
that thy name may not be blasphemed or wounded,
that thy people may not be grieved,
that thine enemies may not be hardened,
that my peace may not be injured.

Give me a heart full of love to thyself and to others.
Let me discover in this life what I am before thee,
that I may not find myself another character
hereafter.

Prepare me for death,
that I may not die after long affliction or suddenly,
but after short illness, with no confusion or disorder,
and a quiet discharge in peace, with adieu
to brethren.

Let not my days end like lumber in a house,
but give me a silent removing from one world
to another.
Inscribe these petitions in thy book,
present them to thy Father,
Set thine Amen to them, as I do on my part
of the covenant.

Claude Mariottini
Professor of Old Testament
Northern Baptist Seminary

Tags: Covenant, Devotion, Ministry, Prayer